People go crazy for Popeyes $5 Big Box, but it only comes around twice a year. Despite its limited appearance, people crave it around the clock, and the social media chatter surrounding fried chicken reflects that. With this in mind, we wanted to put bring a definitive answer to one of life’s most pressing questions: Who craves the Popeyes $5 Big Box the most?

So using brainwave technology, we invented the first mental tug-of-war to see who craved Popeyes chicken more. Two participants enter, but only one comes away with the $5 Big Box.

Popeyes is a leader in culinary innovation. From unique flavor combinations to an endless array of product innovations, we’re always finding new ways to bring flavor to more people—and they love us for it. So when it came to the release of our signature product, the $5 Big Box, we announced it by creating an innovative piece of technology powered by people’s love for our food.

Introducing Popeyes Crave Off, the first tug-of-war game powered by brainwaves. To play, opponents wearing EEG headsets sat at either end of a competition table with a Big Box floating in the middle. At the count of three, contestants craved the Big Box as hard as they could to pull it toward them. As they craved, the participants’ brainwaves were computed through Isadora software and sent back to a large magnet that ran along a track inside the table, moving back and forth toward the stronger craving. In the end, the biggest craving won.

We filmed the event to create special ad units for Facebook, Instagram and Twitter as well as mobile takeovers and targeted custom billboards. Those who couldn’t partake in the activation could participate online in a mobile Crave Off game where people competed in real time, tapping food items as fast as they could for the chance to win a year’s supply of Popeyes.

All of the visuals, game equipment, design elements and video assets speak to Popeyes playful look and feel. Together, they create a quirky futuristic ecosystem of assets that use technology and science to make our food the hero. It’s the perfect blend of innovation and irreverence, just like our brand.

We launched the digital campaign just in time for the Big Box’s long-awaited return in September 2017. The campaign ran September 5–24 alongside the LTO.

Business impact:

– site traffic: 25,823

• Response rate: 22%

• Impressions: 42,564,228

• Change in behavior: n/a

• Consumer awareness: +6% Lift in Ad Recall (per FB)